Weight Loss

Losing weight isn’t easy. There…I said it! Losing weight is stinking hard! The truth is that no matter what the advertising for the latest and greatest diet product promises, it’s hard work. And it’ll take you a while. That sounds pretty discouraging, doesn’t it? After struggling to lose weight for a long time, I’m here to offer some help on how to lose weight. The single most effective “tool” I’ve found for sustainable weight loss is to set smart weight loss goals. What makes a goal smart? Read on to find out.

Find Your Focus

Losing weight won’t happen overnight. We probaby all know how to lose weight…developing better eating habits and moving more. And while we all know how to lose weight, it’s easier said than done. Eating better and moving more are lifestyle changes and it will take a while before they become habits for you. In the meantime, you will need to focus on practicing your new habits daily while focusing on your goal at the same time. If you have a concrete reason of why you want to lose weight you’ll find that focus easier. Here are a few questions to ask yourself. Do I want to live a long, healthy life? Do I want to set a good example for my kids? Will I have a better quality of life if I make these changes? Find your focus and use it to reach your goals before this new lean lifestyle becomes a habit.

Be Specific

Saying “I need to lose some weight” just doesn’t cut it. Sorry to be so harsh, but it’s the truth. You need to be more specific. Set a weight loss goal. Pick a number. How many pounds do you want to lose? How many inches do you want to whittle from your waist? Be specific. The only way you’ll know when you’ve reached your goal is to have a number in mind to reach. Otherwise, while you might make progress, you’ll never reach your goal. I set a goal to lose 100 pounds.

Set A Deadline For Yourself

Someone smart once told me that goals without deadlines are just dreams. There’s a lot of truth in that statement. Without a deadline, you have no frame of reference. As specific as wanting to lose 25 pounds is, without a deadline it could take you a year or a decade. Smart goals have a realistic deadline. Losing a pound per week is an ambitious but realistic goal. Losing 25 pounds in the next 6 months is a smart goal with a deadline. I set a goal to lose 100 pounds by the end of 2018. I broke it down into smaller goals and wrote those numbers in my planner. And while I’m not sure that I’ll hit my goal, I’m way closer than I would have been if I hadn’t set a goal and a deadline!

Celebrate Your Victories…but Don’t Use Food

Changing your eating habits and getting your body moving isn’t easy, especially if you’ve been a couch potato until now. Stay motivated by breaking your big goal into little mini goals and celebrating your victories along the way. If your end goal is to lose 25 pounds in 6 months, break it down into 5 pound increments. Give yourself a pat on the back and do something nice or fun to celebrate each 5 pound loss. Just try not to use food as a reward.

Get Real

Don’t set your goals so high you’ll get discouraged when you don’t meet them. Losing 100 pounds in 3 months just isn’t going to happen. You don’t want to set yourself up for failure. Instead, set yourself up for success with goals that you can reach … but don’t be afraid to have to stretch a bit to reach them.

And don’t get discouraged if you fall off the wagon every now and again. Life happens and sometimes there’s just no way to say no to that slice of pizza (or two, or three). The important thing is to pick yourself right back up and keep working towards your goals. Don’t let a cheat meal become a cheat week…or a cheat month!

Stay Accountable

It’s nice to have someone that has your back. Find an accountability partner or a group of them. I am part of a group of ladies that encourage each other. We are all on a journey to lose weight. We check in with each other on Marco Polo. We share recipes and encouragement! Find people that are on a weight loss journey as well. You can support and encourage each other. You can call each other out when you’re binging on junk food or skipping your walk yet again. Share your goals with your accountability partner and have him or her hold you to them.

Now it’s your turn. You know how to lose weight! Ready to set some smart weight loss goals?

I’ll be sharing more tips for weight loss between now and the first of the year! Let’s actually make those resolutions stick!

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This past week has been one for the record books…and not in a good way. A close friend and a family member were both diagnosed with cancer. My daughter was in a car accident that wasn’t her fault but left her shook up and injured. I’ve spent multiple days at the hospital with her getting tests done. And it’s another week that has gone by without exercise.

I’ve also noticed a significant increase in inflammation in my body. When you have autoimmune issues like I do, you know when your inflammation levels are rising. I’m sure that stress, lack of exercise, and poor food choices have all contributed. And lest you think I’ve been eating nothing but junk, I haven’t. I’ve been eating decent, but inflammation feeds on sugar and I really need to cut out sugar. I’ve been saying for a while that I need to go back on keto to get my inflammation back under control, but I was planning on waiting until after the first of the year. I think it’s going to be sooner than that. I’ve just started reading a book called Anyway You Canand I have a feeling it’s going to inspire me to start as soon as I finish reading it! If you’ve ever thought about keto or if you have a loved one who has cancer, it’s definitely worth the read. It’s SOOOOO good!

Anyway…I am getting so close to that stinking 100 pound goal of mine. I’m only 8 pounds away! Unfortunately, with Christmas and Christmas parties between now and the end of the year, I’m not sure it’s going to happen.

Anyway…I lost .6 pounds this week. Not bad considering I haven’t worked out. I’m hoping to get in a few workouts this week. I think that will help tremendously!

Goodness gracious! I can’t believe I let so many weeks go by without posting. My gallbladder surgery really took it out of me. I’ve been way more tired than usual and still am not back to working out. Just a regular day of work leaves me exhausted. Anyway…sorry for the lengthy absence of weight loss progress. My weight has been totally up and down over the last few weeks. When I weighed myself 2 weeks after gallbladder surgery, I was up 8 pounds. YIKES. I’m sure it had to do with the things I ate the first couple weeks after surgery (mostly Ritz crackers and McDonald’s Cokes) and my lack of exercise. Anyway, the weight is coming back down and as of this morning, I weighed 185.6. And while that is higher than I was when I last shared my weight, I’m still pleased with my weigh-in. I have a feeling next week will be a big loss. I’m finally back to eating healthy. And I’m hoping to start adding some slow hiking back in this week.

It’s been a while since I’ve done a comparison photo and since I’m wearing the same outfit today that I wore last February (in a different size) I thought this was the perfect opportunity to do a side-by-side.

The picture on the left is me in February. I had purchased this dress in a size 2XL and wearing it with the Stuart Weitzman boots made me feel really fierce! I LOVED this outfit and the way I felt while wearing it. I was so bummed when the dress was eventually too big to wear. Imagine my excitement when I was able to buy the same dress in a size Medium. I put it on today with the same pair of boots (which I’m now able to pull above my knees). With the boots above my knees I feel like a superhero…thus the superhero pose! I’m constantly amazed at the progress that has happened this year. I’ve worked hard, I’ve been consistent, and for the most part I’ve been pretty disciplined and it’s paying off.

I had my surgery last Thursday morning and was totally out of it when they sent me home. I totally forgot to ask if they weighed my gallbladder and how much it weighed. Since they pumped me full of fluids via IV, my weight was higher than usual when I got home. I decided that I’m not going to weigh myself til next Wednesday. Next Wednesday is also the day I follow up with the surgeon and hopefully the day my stitches will come out. I’m also hoping he’ll clear me to exercise.

Don’t get me wrong. I don’t feel like exercising at all. I’ve been tired and sore for the last week. I thought I’d have a super quick recovery, but this gallbladder surgery has kicked my butt! I’m going back to work tomorrow. I’m working shorter days than usual and I’ll be very careful to avoid lifting and bending, but since the smallest things tire me out, I have a feeling I’ll be going to bed early for the next week! 🙂

I’ve been totally living in LuLaRoe for the last week. My stomach has been really tender and having anything press against it is painful, so this has been the look I’ve been rocking for the last week.

I thought I’d also share a picture of me on surgery day. I had to be at the hospital at 5:30 am and I had to take a shower with a surgical scrub before I left home. I also wasn’t allowed to wear any lotion, powder or makeup. My friends were hoping my husband would shoot videos while I was in recovery, but it didn’t happen. So here I am before my surgery.

Total Weight Loss: 92.3 pounds

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So this happened last Wednesday morning…which is why I never got around to posting. 🙂An unlatched gate went through the front windshield of my car. Thankfully, no one was injured, but my car is a mess. The repair place is estimating that I won’t get my car back until the end of November, so that stinks. Anyway, the good news is that no one was hurt.

This past week has been super busy. I had family and friends in town last weekend for a big work event and we also hosted people at the boutique on Sunday.

My mom and I twinning at the boutique! Don’t we look like angels?!?

Sunday night we had an old west experience at an equestrian center. It was super fun!

My family headed back home on Monday and Monday night I started feeling lousy. By the time I woke up Tuesday morning, I felt horrible. I was sweating, nauseated and in a ton of pain. By the time I got home from taking my daughter to school I was miserable. My husband took the little kids to school and I stayed home with what I thought was the flu. By Tuesday afternoon, I was having back pain, chills and more nausea and I began to wonder if I had gallstones. I ended up driving myself to the Emergency room after I finished voting for an ultrasound that revealed that I do indeed have gallstones.

Anyway…I’m meeting with the surgeon today and will most likely have surgery in the next 24 to 48 hours. I’m hoping that my gallbladder weighs a ton. My goal is to lose 100 pounds by the end of 2018 and if my gallbladder weighs 8 pounds, that would push me over the 100 pound mark.

On a strange related note, yesterday when I was at the emergency room they weighed me. Normally I would have taken off as many clothes, shoes, etc as I possibly could have before stepping on the scale. Yesterday, I didn’t even take off my shoes. Even with my shoes and clothes, I only weighed 189. If I hadn’t been in so much pain, I probably would have done a little jig in the hospital. Hopefully, I’ll be able to report on the weight of my gallbladder next week!

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Welcome to Flabby Fashionista!

Lisa Joy Thompson started FlabbyFashionista.com to to encourage moms and to empower them to look their best, feel their best, and be their very best. You’ll find reviews, giveaways, encouragement, weight loss tips, and so much more.